* John is the only chef in the Sears Chef Challenge that works for a nonprofit. His goal is to make healthy, local food more accessible to people—no matter their economic circumstances. He practices that here at Miriam’s Kitchen, and is involved with initiatives around the city (including Michelle Obama’s Chefs Move to Schools program) that practice the same.
* If John gets through to the next round, Miriam’s Kitchen will win $5,000. That means 5,000 additional healthy meals Chef John can serve to our guests. We serve nearly 80,000 meals a year, so this would be a huge help.
* John is currently competing against two other chefs from DC. You can see their bios at www.searschefchallenge.com. The vote tally keeps fluctuating, and despite being in the lead for the past four days, John is now down by a big number of votes. We’re rallying our supporters, but need a wider base of support to get John to the semifinals in Chicago and $5,000 for Miriam’s Kitchen!
* If John wins this round, he’ll head out to Chicago to compete against three other chefs from Los Angeles, Chicago and New York. Clearly, DC has the edge in this culinary competition, and we think Chef John gives DC the best chance to win.
* If John wins the whole thing, Miriam’s Kitchen will win $20,000. That’s right, 20,000 more meals for our guests—a quarter of all the meals we’ll serve in 2010!

You can see more information about John and the competition at www.searschefchallenge.com. We really proud of what he’s done in the competition so far, and would love to share his enthusiasm for fresh, local and healthy food with your readers.”